Improvement in horseshoes



N, PETERS PHormLlTHoGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D CA of this specification, in'which- UNITED STATES PAT-ENT @Prieno I WILLIAM. II'. TOWERS, or PHILADELPHIA, PnruysYLVAruA.

IMPROVEMENT itl-'HORSEsl-fl'oI-:sv

Specification forming part of Letters Patentlho. 135,345-, dated December 20,

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H.' TOWERS., of' the city and county of Philadelphia, and

State of Pennsylvania, have invented lav new and useful Improvement in Horseshoes; and I do hereby declare that the following ,is afull, clear, and exact description of theY construction and operation of' the same, referencebeing had to the annexeddrawings, rforming part The nature of my invention yconsists in mak-'- ing-the'shoe-with inclined 'flanges or lips rising from the front and sides of its upper sur-- face, corresponding in form with the parts of the hoof against which .they 'are caused to bear when fitted to the horse or other animal,` one of which flanges is so constructed as to be capable of removal for fitting'theshoaand afterward to bereplaced 'and fastened .by a screw, wedge, or other suitable equivalent in in s'uch a nanner as to secure -the-shoe firmly` to the hoof' Without the aid of ythenails here-` lofore employed 'for that' purpose, which tend i to split and weaken the hoof and freque'n lyl penetrate the soft and sensitive parts of he foot.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my inventioln-I will proceed to describe its construction and; the'manner'v of at-V taching itl to the hoof.

The shoeA is `made ,ofc-ast,l malleable, or wrought iron or other 'suitable"inaterial`, to correspond with the form of the hoof ofthe horse or other animal for which it is designedy,

the toe C and heel-calks 1)- being formed on,

it at the time of casting or swaging the same.

At the front part of the shoe, immediately over the toe, is formed an inclined flange 'or lip, E', corresponding in `its inclination and curvature with the fore part of the hoof, and

on the sides next the outer edges of the same;

. a suitable distance from the toe, are formed the two other flanges or lips, F G', inclining inward in a similar manner to the, flange or Fig. Liis a side i lip-A E', so as to .conferln to the 'curvature' and vinclination of the parts of the hoof situated next the sar'newhen the shoe is 4ttedto the 'hoof'. One of the side flanges, 'G, is made vseparate, from the shoe and fastened to it by v`spending recess inthe side of the shoe, the vbase being secured bya screw, c, passed through it and-the shoe, as seen in Fig. 2, or inl any snit-able manner substantially the same;l or the flange may be' formed-with a dovetail from the heel of the shoe, as seen in Figs. 3 and 5, the forward part of .the'fiange being a wedge, screw, or other analogous device being used topre'vent the slippingof the flange.-

'lhepermanent flanges E and Fl may be either cast, seta-ged, or otherwisefsecuredto face, andthe two side anges, F G', sufficiently far backv and toward each other, as to firmly clasp the hoof and prevent the shoe from moving either backward, forward, or sidewise on the same. 'Y They are, moreover, made convex onl their outer surfaces and tapering to a feather edge at their upper part, withayiew of adding to theirbeauty ofappearance when on the horses foot, and may, if desired, -be

to form an even surface with the same;

The man'ner of attaching my improved shoe to the hoof is as follows: vThe shoe is adapted by the smith to the size and vconfoimztion`-of the hooi", which is then pared on its lower surface, so that it will rest firmly on the top of the shoe. The hoof is also pared on its 'front and sides to correspond with the inner sur- `faces ofY the flanges or lips E F G. 'After these preparations are made, the shoe is placed over the hoof, with `the permanent front and side flanges in close contact with the portions of thel hoof pared to receive them, and the movable flange secured to the shoe by the screw c 0r any analogous device, thus causing the th'reel flanges to embrace the hoof and firmly hold the shoe in its proper place, the back 'parts of the side flanges, F G, approaching each o ther as they extend backward, and serving to'preventthe hoof from receding from Vthe front part'of the shoe.

sliding the .base a of the fiange into a corre-,-

baseiaiid passed into a' correspondinggrooveA ,formed of sections d, to facilitate its insertion,-

the main body of th'eshoe- All the anges, projectV su'iii'ciently far above theupper sur-4 "countersunk in the hoof, so as to cause them I do not claim the vemployment of anges or I In testilnony whereof I haveherennto signed lips on the upper surface of the shoe; but my name before two subscribing Witnesses.

What I do claim as my invention, and desire" Y v to secure by Letters Patent, s VILLIAM H. TOWERS.

Constructingthe shoe with a detached ange', secured substantially as described, so that the Witnesses: side and front anges-shall rinly fasten the GEO. PATTEN, shoe to the hoof, as herein fully set forth. JAS. D. CLAY, 

